The Anti-Intellectual Presidency

The Decline of Presidential Rhetoric from George Washington to George W. Bush

Elvin Lim

takes historical look at the intersection of American political opinion, Presidential campaigns, and political communication

presents unprecedented analysis of primary source texts and data from presidential speechwriters throughout history

The Anti-Intellectual Presidency

The Decline of Presidential Rhetoric from George Washington to George W. Bush

Elvin Lim

Description

In The Anti-Intellectual Presidency, Elvin Lim draws on interviews with more than 40 presidential speechwriters to investigate this relentless qualitative decline, over the course of 200 years, in our presidents' ability to communicate with the public. Lim argues that the ever-increasing pressure for presidents to manage public opinion and perception has created a "pathology of vacuous rhetoric and imagery" where gesture and appearance matter more than accomplishment and fact. Lim tracks the campaign to simplify presidential discourse through presidential and speechwriting decisions made from the Truman to the present administration, explaining how and why presidents have embraced anti-intellectualism and vague platitudes as a public relations strategy. Lim sees this anti-intellectual stance as a deliberate choice rather than a reflection of presidents' intellectual limitations. Only the smart, he suggests, know how to dumb down. The result, he shows, is a dangerous debasement of our political discourse and a quality of rhetoric which has been described, charitably, as "a linguistic struggle" and, perhaps more accurately, as "dogs barking idiotically through endless nights." Sharply written and incisively argued, The Anti-Intellectual Presidency sheds new light on the murky depths of presidential oratory, illuminating both the causes and consequences of this substantive impoverishment.

The Anti-Intellectual Presidency

The Decline of Presidential Rhetoric from George Washington to George W. Bush

Elvin Lim

From Our Blog

By Elvin Lim It has become a routine recourse, when examining American politics, for modern commentators to blame the Constitution for the failures of government. We are told that the separation of powers encourages gridlock, and parties pull together what the Constitution pulls asunder.